Italian champions defend crown

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The Italian Deaflympic volleyball team hold animated conversations at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre yesterday. They are here to defend their Deaflympics crown.Photo: Shannon Morris

They don't make the noise you'd expect, but there was no
mistaking the nationality of the group of men animatedly gesturing
to each other in blue-and-white tracksuits at the Melbourne Sports
and Aquatic Centre yesterday. Their body language gave away the
members of the Italian deaf volleyball team, here to defend their
Deaflympics crown.

Karim Zouiten, whose team has won the past three gold medals,
said all the team members played in the "hearing" competitions in
Italy and came together for the Deaflympics and European
competitions.

Early last century, deaf Frenchman Eugene Rubens-Alcais floated
the idea of a deaf version of the Olympic Games. From that came the
International Committee of Silent Sports and the Deaflympic
movement, with the first event held in Paris in 1924 - predating
the Commonwealth Games and Paralympics.

This year more than 3600 competitors and officials are involved
in the 12-day event, with Australia's team of more than 150 the
largest this country has entered. Veteran competitors Dean
Barton-Smith (athletics) and Kim Kavanagh (basketball), both
competing in their third Deaflympics, were last night named
Australian team captains at a function at the Melbourne Town Hall.
Kavanagh has also been named to carry the flag at the opening
ceremony at Olympic Park tonight.

Deaflympics patron Cindy-Lu Fitzpatrick claimed national titles
in the 100 and 200-metre breaststroke in the 1980s and represented
Australia at two Commonwealth Games and two Pan Pacific Games
despite being profoundly deaf. She went on to stardom in the
Deaflympic movement, winning 19 gold medals.

Barton-Smith represented Australia at the 1992 Olympics in
Barcelona in the decathlon and has come out of retirement to
compete in discus, javelin and shot put at this event.

Others such as track sprinter Lara Hollow-Williams and Victorian
swimmer Megan Grant, who both also have visual impairments, have
competed at the Paralympics.

Australian chef de mission Brett Hidson said the team was
expected to perform well in athletics and swimming in
particular.